Breakfast

PREMIER PANEL 1 - From the Top: CEOs’ Industry Perspectives

• Speakers:

• Elizabeth Haar, AF Group

• Jerry Hamilton, Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel LLP

• Thomas Motamed, CNA Financial Corporation_11137

• Jane Tutoki, Sedgwick

• Richard Whitt, Markel Service, Inc.

Insurance company CEOs join us for a dynamic panel session. The CEOs will share their industry insights and the impact those will have on the claims and litigation management fronts. No topic is off limits as this panel delves into industry innovations, trends and challenges.

Break

SESSION 1 - Alternative Dispute Resolution - Ethical Considerations of Mediation

• Speakers:

• Joan E. Cochran, Cochran Davis & Associates, P.C.

• Steven DiSiervi, Abrams, Gorelick, Friedman & Jacobson, LLP

• Amanda Gann, Good2Go Auto Insurance

• Allen Hurkin-Torres, JAMS

• Michele Newman, Hamlin & Burton Liability Management, Inc.

Discuss a practical approach to difficult mediations through role play. The panel will also discuss ethical issues, such as full disclosure, limits of confidentiality and expectations of procedural fairness. The group will also explore creative solutions to impasse caused by difficult parties and large numbers of participants.

SESSION 1 - Claims Management - Is There A Hole In My International Shoe?

• Speakers:

• Kay Baxter, Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani

• Jeanine Clark, Margolis Edelstein

• Chris Reilly, North American Risk Services NARS

• David Zehner, Zehner Trial Consulting

This is an interactive discussion focusing upon the United States Supreme Court's decision in Daimler AG v Bauman, 134 S.Ct. 746 (2014), and its potential reshaping of personal jurisdiction. This case affects litigation involving foreign parties, corporations, or litigation with international elements.

SESSION 1 - Claims Management - New Medicare Contractor Changes Compliance Landscape

• Speakers:

• Tara Acton, Lumen Technologies, Inc.

• Cliff Connor, Gallagher Bassett

• Katie Fox, Verisk

• Monika McDonnell Boswein, Acuity, A Mutual Insurance Company

Starting Oct 1, 2015, the Commercial Repayment Center (CRC) began processing conditional payments in conjunction with the Benefits Coordination & Recovery Center (BCRC). Learn the distinction of which contractor will handle your conditional payment claim and why. Information will be provided on the background of the CRC, how it is compensated, and what other activities they conduct on behalf of Medicare that could lead to further enhancements to the services being provided to CMS. Find out the reason for increase use by CMS of Conditional Payment Notices (CPNs), and how they are different from Conditional Payment Letters (CPLs) and more importantly, whether a settlement, judgment or award is determinative of responsibility to pay.

SESSION 1 - Claims Management - Settlement Funds and Investment Risk

• Speakers:

• Debra Levy, Sedgwick

• Marques Torbert, Ametros Financial Corporation

• Bill Wakelee, Chronovo

• Richard Woollams, Self Employed

Discuss the behavior science behind why claimants make decisions to settle or try a case. Discussions will include why injured plaintiffs are really unique investors who cannot afford any risk with their settlement funds. Various elements of market volatility and risk will be discussed, as well as other preferred methods for negotiating cases with structured settlements, special needs trusts, and life insurance. Learn the latest negotiation techniques using these products and services to increase claim savings and outcomes.

SESSION 1 - Construction - How to Best Wrap Up Construction Claims in the 21st Century

• Speakers:

• Michael Daoussis, Wells Fargo Insurance Services

• Fred Perez, McLarens

• Linda Pretzel Roberts, RiverStone Resources LLC

• Brenda Radmacher, Akerman LLP

Construction defect and construction product claims present complex challenges in the claims and litigation process. The implementation of Owner Controlled Insurance Programs (OCIPs) by the insurance industry was an attempt to streamline and manage these claims. However, OCIPs present various challenges in both the legal and claims handling mechanisms. This program will cover practical tips on how OCIPs can be best administered to maximize their utility and efficiency in resolving claims.

SESSION 1 - Diversity and Inclusion - M2: Motivating Millennials and B3: Brindling the Baby Boomers

• Speakers:

• Amy Cooper, Gallagher Bassett

• Hedy Linette Ranieri, Berkley Technology Underwriters

• Richard Ranieri, Weber Gallagher Simpson Stapleton Fires & Newby LLP

Do you see the older generation as workaholics who are never satisfied? Do you see the younger generation as unmotivated and undedicated to their jobs? This session will address the differences between millennials and baby boomers in their approach to and attitudes about work. It will also explore the ways in which the two groups can better understand and respect each other and grow healthy work relationships .

SESSION 1 - Environmental and Toxic Tort - Identifying, Avoiding, Mitigating, and Insuring Environmental Risk in Construction

• Speakers:

• William "Chip" D'Angelo, Self Employed

• Anthony Polini, Allied World

• Tracy Alan Saxe, Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C.

• Max West, Aon

Environmental claims, litigation, and operational issues have been plaguing real estate and development projects for years, resulting in delays, cost overruns, and third-party exposures. Many properties built in the late 1960s and 70s are now obsolete and the resultant renovation or demolition is uncovering hazardous materials and environmental challenges. New materials not addressed in the 80s and 90s are now being regulated. This session will explore how these issues can be identified and properly addressed. We will discuss the insurance policies available to cover environmental risks and how to maximize insurance recovery, explain how the risks can be mitigated and claims avoided, and describe steps that can be taken in preparing and defending an environmental claim or litigation, if one arises.

SESSION 1 - Environmental and Toxic Tort - Know Your Poop: Category 3 Black Water Claims

• Speakers:

• Tamara Ashjian, Tokio Marine HCC

• Tracey Dodd, Halliwell

• Richard E. King, Melchiode Marks King LLC

• Stephen Truono, NFI Industries

While mold claims and litigation exploded well over a decade ago, and policy exclusions for fungi and bacteria are now common, claims and litigation associated with the presence of Category 3 Black Water, have increased exponentially, to the point that there are more claims for Category 3 Black Water than mold. Failure to address these claims head on can potentially result in litigation regarding bad faith, the incorrect application of sub-limits or failure to exclude coverage resulting in significant costs to remediate. This roundtable will discuss the definition of all types of water damage, environmental testing necessary to support these claims, as well as provide litigation case studies where these claims have arisen.

SESSION 1 - Ethics - Mix It Up: Counsel's Ethical Obligations and Fair Claims Handling

• Speakers:

• Jill Daly, Tokio Marine HCC

• Haralyn Isaac, Great American Insurance Group

• Steve Lokus, Sompo International Insurance

• Patrick Mendes, Tyson & Mendes LLP

• Howard Passin, Lockton Companies, LLC

Separate professional and commercial line claims will provide the backdrop for this discussion of the practical considerations involved in handling “mixed” claims. The two case studies will highlight considerations associated with an insured’s right to independent counsel, counsel’s reporting obligations to both insured and insurer, and the tension that can develop in satisfying counsel’s duties to each. Both counsel’s ethical obligations and fair claims handling practices will be emphasized.

SESSION 1 - Extra-Contractual - What Is The Meaning of Bad Faith?

• Speakers:

• David Cutter, Self Employed

• Adam Doherty, Allied World

• Megan Scully, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance

In this litigious age, insureds often allege bad faith for strategic purposes when their insurance claim does not go exactly how they would like. However, even when an insurance company does everything right in handling a claim, seemingly innocuous aspects of claim handling can create risk factors for potential bad faith exposure. In this interactive session, we will look at the critical moments in the life of a claim and analyze the potential bad faith exposures that can result. We will define the meaning of bad faith, and then discuss how conflicts of interest, lack of objectivity in handling claims, claim file documentation issues, and over-delegation can be used by insureds to advance a bad faith claim.

SESSION 1 - Insurance Coverage - Managing Difficult Excess Insurance Claims

• Speakers:

• Clarence Lee, Saul Ewing LLP

• Heidi McCormick, Ironshore Insurance Company

• Cheryl Renfer, Ironshore Insurance Company

Excess insurance claims present unique and challenging coverage issues for claim resolution professionals. This roundtable will discuss both practical and specific considerations for excess insurance claims, including excess insurance contract interpretation and follow-form policy interpretation. The session will also address the duties of underlying insurers to excess carriers and the potential challenges and conflicts that may arise between the primary and excess carriers when handling and/or settling a claim that may that often arise when the excess policy is potentially implicated.

SESSION 1 - Insurance Fraud - Fraud: An Unruly Predator of Epidemic Proportions

• Speakers:

• Mark Dolin, Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & Boyer, P.A.

• Courtney Flanagan, Farm Bureau Insurance of Michigan

• Luis Flores, Crane Engineering

This session will focus on the exponentially growing global concerns surrounding fraud claims that insurers and corporations alike are facing on a daily basis. Through a detailed factual presentation of three real life case studies, this group will promote extensive discussions and collaborations designed to not only outline the problem but also to pinpoint precise and successful measures to counteract this epidemic.

SESSION 1 - Litigation Management - Litigation Management: Process Mapping and Project Management Strategies

• Speakers:

• Hans Bengard, DXC Technology Services LLC

• Heather Connor, McAngus Goudelock & Courie, LLC (MGC)

• Taylor Smith, Suite 200 Solutions

• Daniel Winkler, Westfield Insurance

This session will discuss the benefits to the insured, insurer and counsel in the use of process mapping and project management. We will discuss how to devise a road map to lead to more meaningful and cost effective handling of claims. This discussion will focus not only on the insurer implementing these strategies in its day to day operations but counsel as well. We will focus on a logical flow for handling claims that is consistent and that strives to acheive the desired outcome in the most efficient manner.

SESSION 1 - Litigation Management - Using Obamacare to Reduce Damages in Your Personal Injury Case

• Speakers:

• Thomas Dawson, TD&P Consulting

• Stephanie Holzback, AIG

• Douglas Horelick, Clyde & Co

• Butch Knowlton, Ringler

• Richard Montes, Mauro Lilling Naparty

The Affordable Care Act, more commonly known as “Obamacare,” can effectively be used in personal injury cases to reduce damage exposure. Whether “Obamacare” is treated as a collateral source, or instead is considered on the issue of the reasonable cost of care, it is a weapon that defendants have in their arsenal, and should be deployed in appropriate circumstances.

SESSION 1 - Product Liability - Machinery and Equipment Failures and Analysis

• Speakers:

• Trevor Arnold, Crawford Global Technical Services

• Chelsea Pyasetskyy, The Thenell Law Group

• Shawn Ray, J.S. Held LLC

• Brian Yarbrough, Zurich North America

This session will explore failure modes and root causes of equipment, machinery, vehicles and mechanical systems. The failure of a system or component can manifest in many different ways but ultimately a human somewhere was involved. A theory will be proposed that every failure happens because someone somewhere has done something wrong or failed to do what was necessary. The validity of the theory shall be debated.

SESSION 1 - Professional Liability - Early Resolution Strategies for Employment Practices Litigation

• Speakers:

• Kevin Fisher, Allied World

• Amy Fredericks, Self Employed

• Crystal Ivy, AmTrust Insurance Group

• Michael Saucier, Libby, O'Brien, Kingsley & Champion LLC

• Stefani Schwartz, Self Employed

• Patrick White, Kershaw White

With increasing pressure for early and efficient resolution, this session will examine creative approaches and techniques for successful outcomes in high exposure Employment Practices Litigation (EPL) claims. The interactive session will explore practical steps to manage litigation risks and lower expenses to ensure that high exposure employment claims are resolved in the most efficient manner.

SESSION 1 - Professional Liability - The New Frontier: Liability and Coverage Issues Facing 21st Century Design Professionals

• Speakers:

• Melanie Brown, Munich Re Specialty - North America

• Janet R. Davis, Cozen O’Connor

• Donna Hunt, Ironshore Insurance Company

• Laurie Randolph, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP

Like most professionals, the roles and exposures of design professionals continue to morph and change. Design/Build projects led by the builder rather than the designer are becoming the norm rather than the exception. Claims professionals and counsel experienced in defending design professionals and evaluating coverage will discuss the impact on project discussions, E&O coverage and other developing topics related to architects and engineers.

SESSION 1 - Risk Management - Stratified General Liability Claims: Fast Tracking and Other Techniques

• Speakers:

• Rich Lenkov, Downey & Lenkov LLC

• Michelle Middendorf, Stanley Steemer International, Inc.

• Joe Skinger, CorVel Cost Containment

• Eric Spalsbury, Stanley Steemer International, Inc.

The session will specifically focus on the cost effective and timely settlement of property damage events using a management approach case study and discussion centered on efficient handling of general liability claims. The session will emphasize coordination of service partners to this end.

SESSION 1 - Risk Management - Working with Industry: View from the Commissioner’s Office

• Speakers:

• Jim Donelon, Louisiana Department of Insurance

• Fred Karlinsky, Greenberg Traurig LLP.

• Mike Kreidler, Washington State Office of Insurance Commissioner

• Jim Ridling, Alabama Department of Insurance

A panel of insurance commissioners will discuss some of the major issues facing the insurance industry today. Topics include international and federal influences, cybersecurity, price optimization, and other emerging developments. The commissioners will offer their views on how to address the challenges posed by these emerging issues, and share their thoughts on how regulators and industry can cooperate to achieve the optimum outcome for all stakeholders.

SESSION 1 - Subrogation - Maximizing Production Through Questionable Claim Handling

• Speakers:

• Mercedes Betanco, Wawanesa General Insurance Company

• Natalie Mansour-White, National Commercial Services

• Kevin Price, Mokri Vanis & Jones LLP

Most internal departments are not large enough to handle the volume of UM, small balance, denial, stall and complex claims that require added time and expertise. The world of subrogation is a balancing act, with many competing interests that insurers need to consider. Internal productivity increases when Firm’s outsource questionable claims and do not have employee’s work time consuming unprofitable accounts. This session will provide tips on how to overcome denial and stalling tactics to increase internal collections. We will also target which claims to outsource including where and when to place them along with selecting agencies and/or law firms to their recovery strategy.

SESSION 1 - Technology - Event Data to Autonomous Vehicle Technologies - Where Are We Going?

• Speakers:

• Steve Garner, Westfield Insurance

• Gregory Hirtzel, Fowler Hirtzel McNulty & Spaulding, LLC

• Steven Schorr, DJS Associates, Inc.

From Active Park Assist to driverless cars, the spectrum of potential technological advances coming to an automobile near you range from the seemingly benign to yesterday’s science fiction. Those working in insurance claims and litigation will need to understand these upcoming advanced vehicle systems in order to anticipate their potential impacts and evaluate them within the context of their responsibilities.

SESSION 1 - Technology - The Internet of Things: Where the Cyber Meets the Physical

• Speakers:

• Brian Bornstein, Sompo International Insurance

• Bob Bowman, Unknown

• Bruce Raymond, Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani

• Howard Shafer, Shafer Partners, LLP

The world is still getting its head around cyber threats – with companies scrambling to protect their data and implement damage control when it is lost. With the Internet of Things (IoT) and the number of internet connected devices multiplying exponentially, the potential impact is no longer simply on data but has begun to impact the physical. The President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisor Committee found that compromise or malfunction of IoT devices could have National Security and Emergency Preparedness implications. IoT connected hardware, utilities and even vehicles are now vulnerable. Join us as we discuss the liability implications and how the claims we are handling today could be impacted by The Internet of Things.

Break

SESSION 2 - Alternative Dispute Resolution - Mediation: Behind Closed Doors

• Speakers:

• Kay Anderson, Self Employed

• Bradley Hansmann, Watters Wolf Bub & Hansmann, LLC

• Joshua LeHew, Sentry Insurance Group

• Lisa Rolle, Traub Lieberman Straus & Shrewsberry LLP

Dive into a discussion about the interaction of the mediator with counsel and parties. Discuss the emotions of the mediation process, with a focus on the emotions and issues that take place behind closed doors in the plaintiff's room.

SESSION 2 - Claims Management - Are You Ready for Some Football (Litigation)!?

• Speakers:

• Lance Albright, QBE Insurance

• Robert J. Barth, Barth NeuroScience

• Christopher Fusco, Callahan & Fusco, LLC.

• Laura Zehner, Zehner Trial Consulting

Concussion litigation is a major issue in the news. A new Will Smith movie appropriately entitled Concussion premiered in December 2015. This session will discuss recent trends in concussion litigation facing public entities and their insurers. We will also cover the growing issues around Right to Play laws and the methods sports leagues and municipalities can protect themselves from suit. In addition, we will examine underwriting concerns relating to concussions issues and risks. We will also discuss juror views relating to high contact sports and those who participate in activities where injury is a certainty. Finally, we will look at the medicine behind concussion diagnosis, testing and prevention.

SESSION 2 - Claims Management - Navigating the Waters of Large SIRs and Deductibles

• Speakers:

• Nick Alvarez, McLarens

• Daniel Bean, AvalonBay Communties, Inc

• Traci Gill, Markel Service, Inc.

• Traci Lagasse, Lagasse Branch Bell & Kinkead, LLP

• Kenan Loomis, Cozen O’Connor

Companies often obtain policies with large self-insured retentions (SIR) or deductibles, to defray the cost of insurance or keep control of claims. Many issues can arise within the SIR/deductible that require careful analysis and navigation for our clients and carriers. Our roundtable will educate the audience on the statutory and case law relevant to determining the duty to defend and indemnify when the client/insured cannot satisfy the SIR/deductible, and will provide strategies in navigating the common issues.

SESSION 2 - Claims Management - Preventing an Event from Becoming a Crisis

• Speakers:

• Robert Alpert, ICALM Group

• Thomas Best, Home Depot U.S.A., Inc.

• Elizabeth Ganiere, EnergySolutions

• John MacNaughton, Morris, Manning & Martin, LLP

Utilizing recent real world examples and years of crisis response experience, examples and the methodologies will be employed to demonstrate how to respond to a crisis to protect the corporate image and product or service integrity. The session will also discuss how to substantially reduce the cost and expenses of resolving the aftermath favorably by controlling claims and efficiently managing litigation.

SESSION 2 - Construction - Mediating, Arbitrating and Litigating Construction Claims

• Speakers:

• Carrie L. Ciliberto, Self Employed

• Francine Giugno, Burglass Tankersley Gaudin Phayer

• Barbara Laskaris-Lorigan, Golden State Claims Adjusters

• David M. O'Connor, O'Connor & Associates, LLC

• Lee Wright, Tokio Marine HCC

As litigation costs are increasing, parties are looking at alternative dispute resolution. However, deciding whether mediation, arbitration or litigation is the most advantageous way to resolve a potential or pending dispute is not as straightforward as it may initially seem. This session will discuss evaluating a construction claim to determine whether to mediate, arbitrate or litigate a claim including the various arbitration and mediation clauses in construction contracts. We will also discuss effective advocacy of a construction claim in mediation, arbitration and litigation.

SESSION 2 - Cyber Liability - The Experts Speak: Cyber and Data Privacy Risk

• Speakers:

• Joe DePaul, IronGate

• Elissa Doroff, Sygnia

• Cathleen Kelly Rebar, Rebar Kelly

• Brian Robb, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance

• Zach Scheublein, Aon

This session will focus on expert analysis of cyber and data privacy risk and how the insurance industry and outside counsel work together to assist insureds in mitigating the inevitable. The panel will discuss underwriting concerns, risk assessment, insurance coverage, event response and litigation of cyber claims.

SESSION 2 - Cyber Liability - The Fallout of the Ashley Madison Attack

• Speakers:

• Mitchell Ayes, Callahan & Fusco, LLC.

• Teresa Milano, Woodruff Sawyer

• Jessica Thomas, Self Employed

• Jennifer Wojciechowski, Community Association Underwriters of America, Inc.

Explore the issues from the data breach on the infamous Ashley Madison website and discuss whether Ashley Madison can be held liable for various injuries that occurred to its customers in the aftermath of a cyber attack. We will also explore various employment, cyber security, and privacy related aspects of the breach, and discuss potential shareholder actions deriving from the scandal.

SESSION 2 - Diversity and Inclusion - Getting Women into the First Chair

• Speakers:

• Rima Ghandour, Ghandour Law

• Karen Kalzer, Helsell Fetterman LLP

• Mary Parme, Golden State Claims Adjusters

• Erin Weatherspoon, Nationwide Insurance Company

A recent ABA study on Women in the Profession reported that men appear as lead counsel in 76% percent of those civil litigation cases that identify a lead counsel. The disparity is even greater in representation by firms in the AmLaw 200 and Small Private Firm categories. This roundtable seeks to discuss and brainstorm the ideas and steps to improve such statistics. While not denying their existence, the group seeks to focus on concrete positive steps for individual success rather than discuss issues of social factors and bias. We will discuss perspectives on what the industry values in selecting lead and trial counsel and how female attorneys can demonstrate thpse industry competencies and values.

SESSION 2 - Environmental and Toxic Tort - A New Smoking Gun in Civil Litigation

• Speakers:

• Tracey Dodd, Halliwell

• Adena Edwards, Starr Companies

• Christopher Hillsley, McGivney, Kluger, Clark & Intoccia, P.C.

• Jared Shafer, Maron Marvel Bradley Anderson & Tardy LLC

Even more reliable than eye witness testimony and surveillance video, genetic testing and DNA analysis can outright disprove a plaintiff's theory or possibly be a basis for a strong defense. The session will address types of litigation employing these techniques, information that can be harvested, court approval, expert analysis/cost and drawbacks. A case study will presented regarding the recent use of genetic testing performed in a case where the decedent was allegedly exposed to benzene in the course of his employment.

SESSION 2 - Environmental and Toxic Tort - What Is That Stuff in My Well?

• Speakers:

• Joann Dickinson, Resolute Management Inc.

• Rudy Perrino, Self Employed

• Bryan Stringer, Rimkus

We have all seen the claims of contamination of drinking water wells and other waters, such as agricultural water, by production water and drilling wastes created by the drilling of oil wells and hydraulic fracturing or fracking. This session will discuss what is required to defend against such a claim from both a legal and a scientific perspective, as well as what goes into valuing such a claim from an insurance perspective.

SESSION 2 - Extra-Contractual - The New Trend in Bad Faith Litigation

• Speakers:

• Joe Cowan, Hand Arendall LLC

• Johan Obregon, Kerley Walsh Matera & Cinquemani PC

• Sean Reidy, State Farm

• Randall West, AmRisc Group

In the last year, insurers have seen a rising number of first party lawsuits from non-insureds due to post-loss assignment of contractual rights to strangers to the insurance contract. As a result, insurers face potential exposure to inflated indemnity claims, extra-contractual or double indemnity damages as a result of assignments to which they did not consent. This rountable will explore the reasons behind this emerging trend, the effectiveness of the anti-assignment clause in the insuring agreement, and strategies for insurers to deal with such claims.

SESSION 2 - Insurance Coverage - New Developments in Intellectual Property, Media and Cyber Coverage Issues

• Speakers:

• Kathryn Guinn, Dentons US LLP

• Catherine Lyle, Tokio Marine HCC

• Antonio Trotta, QBE Insurance

This session will address recent developments in coverage for intellectual property claims, implicating personal and advertising injury (CGL), media liability, and cyber policy forms. This is a rapidly developing area of law and subject of some of the most high-profile coverage litigation in the country today. The session will start with an intermediate-level introduction to the available coverage forms and the most commonly litigated issues, and then proceed to a case-study analysis of three recent high-profile cases: Sony v. Zurich; In re NCAA Student-Athlete Name and Likeness Licensing; and Columbia Casualty v. Cottage Heath System.

SESSION 2 - Insurance Fraud - The Future of Fighting Fraud

• Speakers:

• Dwight Geddes, Metro Claims & Risk Mgmt

• Brett Kelley, Assurant

• Charles Watkins, Kubicki Draper

This roundtable examines how identity theft/cyber security breaches affect auto and property insurance fraud cases and how current technological advances can shape and shift current laws that help in defending, investigating, and litigating fraud.

SESSION 2 - Litigation Management - Jury Selection: Your Last Line of Defense

• Speakers:

• Samuel Carucci, Allied World

• Anna Fron, Infinity Insurance Company

• Shaun Jackson, Panda Restaurant Group

• Robert Tyson, Tyson & Mendes LLP

Although often overlooked, jury selection is the final frontier for claim resolution professionals to control a claim's trajectory. While much of a claim resolution professional's trial preparation is focused on trial reporting guidelines, expert opinions, judicial profiles, trial budgets, and other important functions, the selection of a jury to decide an insured's fate is crucial to a successful outcome. In this interactive session, a multi-million dollar, catastrophic injury jury trial will set the background for an in-depth discussion of whom you want deciding the value of a large loss claim and how to frame the case from the outset to prevent a runaway jury.

SESSION 2 - Litigation Management - Excess Carrier: Friend or Foe?

• Speakers:

• Joseph R. Fowler, Fowler Hirtzel McNulty & Spaulding, LLC

• Lea Kapral, Swift Transportation Company

• Julie Oh, Airgas, Inc.

The relationship between a primary carrier, an excess carrier, the insured and counsel can become complicated and contentious. Issues such as choice of counsel, the desire of multiple parties to have their lawyer try the case and the role of monitoring counsel can become distractions to the preparation of a high exposure case. Handled differently, the various voices can blend to provide stronger representation and new perspectives to benefit the client. This group will discuss the real life pitfalls and solutions to this process, including the how, when and why to switch trial counsel, the benefit of early intervention by the excess carrier, the often complex issues of notice to the excess carrier and strategies to keep the focus on the common goal, a successful resolution for the client.

SESSION 2 - Litigation Management - Standing on Shaky Ground

• Speakers:

• Christopher Hallman, TRI Pointe Group

• Alan Packer, Newmeyer & Dillion

• Mark Reynolds, Meritage Homes Corporation

• Lisa Unger, Self Employed

This session will examine various ownership and management structures to explore how property and claim ownership may not always overlap. We will discuss how to assess, verify, and challenge the validity and scope of a Plaintiff's assertion of standing to raise claims, and the legal, practical, and insurance implications under various insurance programs. We will also debate the cost/benefit from the perspective of the liability defendant, claims representative, insurer, as well as the impact of standing issues on the negotiation and litigation of the overall case, and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of challenging standing at the inception versus at the settlement negotiations and/or trial stage.

SESSION 2 - Municipal Law - Clearing the Smoke on Medical Marijuana in Employment

• Speakers:

• Ian Clarke-Fisher, Self Employed

• Rachel Freedman, Sompo International Insurance

• William Oberts, Oberts Galasso Law Group

• Sarah Schmitz, Berkley Risk Administrators

At least 23 states have legalized medical marijuana. Many of these eligible patients not only hold medical marijuana cards but also full and part time jobs. This session will discuss the issues surrounding medical marijuana use and the workplace. Special attention will be directed to the similarities and differences between the laws of the states with anti-discrimination language; unique issues faced by employers in certain sectors – municipal employers, safety-sensitive positions, professionals, and employers in multiple jurisdictions; reasonable accommodations – if required and the types of accommodations; and other potential issues that arise with legalized marijuana.

SESSION 2 - Premises Liability - Out-of-Control Gun Violence

• Speakers:

• Debbie Champion, Rynearson Suess Schnurbusch & Champion

• David Glazer, Self Employed

• Paula Letterman, Unknown

• Annissa Stanley, Metro Transit - Saint Louis

A discussion about the increase of liability for third party violence and criminal acts. With a new report of gun violence in the news on a near daily basis, companies and their insurers will be faced with third party and first party liability claims as well as regulatory actions. This session will provide a discussion of the increase in liability for third party criminal acts and the sharp increase in costs for security other preventative measures.

SESSION 2 - Product Liability - Fairy Tales or Non-Fiction: Expert Witness Testimony

• Speakers:

• Julie A. Freitag, Navigators, A Brand of The Hartford

• Nace Naumoski, Self Employed

• Chad Staller, The Center For Forensic Economic Studies

Expert Testimony is a critical component of proving and winning your case. This session will focus on how to evaluate the far-fetched expert and tools used to investigate the credibility of the witness. We will examine situations where expert witness testimony may be excluded and the reasons for exclusion, as well as overall credibility of the experts. Attorneys will learn the necessary tools to investigate the merits of the expert's opinion and methods to discover impeachable areas of the witnesses' background and qualifications. Claim resolution professionals will learn how to better gauge the value of the plaintiff's claim so decisions to defend at trial or early resolution can be made.

SESSION 2 - Professional Liability - Employment Practices Liability Insurance – Twenty Years at a Glance

• Speakers:

• Mercedes Colwin, Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani

• Ron Goldstein, Aon

• Dianna McCarthy, Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan LLP

• Martin Schnabel, Nationwide Insurance Company

This session will discuss the evolution of the EPL product. We will discuss where we are going as a market segment, what is new and evolving in coverages, including what remains as uncovered exposures by certain markets. We will debate certain coverage issues and discuss other insurance products with arguably overlapping coverages. We will also discuss the pros and cons to the duty to defend or duty to indemnify alternatives and which may be appropriate based upon the client, pricing, industry segment and geographic locations. Finally we will discuss where alterative coverages/markets are available for certain types of exposures such as Wage and Hour and Punitive Damages.

SESSION 2 - Professional Liability - Expanding Frontier of Telemedicine: Clear Skies or Stormy Weather?

• Speakers:

• Karin Calimano, BayCare Health Systems

• Gary Leonard, Gallagher Bassett

• Angela Russell, Wilson Elser

The world of telemedicine is expanding at a rapid rate. The benefits of telemedicine are many and include improved access to information, provision of care not previously deliverable, improved access to services, greater convenience and increased quality control. Some of the disadvantages include a breakdown in the relationship between the health care professional and patients and a breakdown of the relationships between professionals. This session will discuss these benefits and disanvantages, as well as insurance coverage for such care, in addition to varying government regulations and confidentiality concerns along with growing concerns that protected health information systems may be breached.

SESSION 2 - Subrogation - Boom! Catastrophic Explosions: Practical Strategies for Maximizing Recoveries

• Speakers:

• Brian Boardingham, AXA XL

• Andrew Brooslin, FM Global

• Raymond Charleston, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance

• Russell Ogle, Exponent

• Dean Rauchwerger, Retired

Catastrophic explosions often involve extensive property damage, significant business interruption and bodily injuries. Strong leadership and solid investigation maximize recovery opportunities. This session discusses best practices for effectively investigating explosion losses, developing viable recovery theories for causation and contributory causes for failed protective systems exacerbating the explosion loss.

Lunch

SESSION 3 - Alternative Dispute Resolution - Increasing the Success and Effectiveness of Mediations

• Speakers:

• Robert Freedman, Freedman Law Firm

• Cynthia Khin, Berkley Life Sciences

• William Lindsay, Unknown

• Lisa Unger, Self Employed

Mediation has become the most popular ADR technique. This roundtable will dissect the mediation process, and focus on the development of techniques and strategies to increase its success and efficiencies.

SESSION 3 - Claims Management - Building Your Own A-Team!

• Speakers:

• Patrick Carroll, Aon

• Adam Cohen, Davids & Cohen, P.C.

• Brian Donnelly, Cullen and Dykman, LLP

• Sean Downing, Steward Health Care System, LLC

• Lisa Wilson, MiddleOak

This session will focus on how even the most challenging and catastrophic cases can be effectively managed and ultimately litigated. The first step to successfully combat any catastrophic claim is to retain qualified local counsel, investigators, and experts. Attendees will leave with a practical and useful understanding of who to retain to internally control and manage information; to mitigate potential media exposure; to alert primary and excess carriers in a high exposure cases; and to mitigate damages by loss transfer.

SESSION 3 - Claims Management - Handling Traumatic Brain Injury Cases

• Speakers:

• Douglas Gibson, MedPsych of Virginia

• Janeen Koch, Unknown

• Melissa Welden, Builders Insurance Group

• Tracy Yaun, AXA XL

This session will focus on the handling, evaluation and defense of traumatic brain injury claims from the time of the loss through trial. We will address steps corporate employees can take at the time of loss to assist in the defense of such claims, the evaluation of traumatic brain injury claims by claims adjusters once the loss is reported, and the need for various experts to assist in the defense of litigated TBI claims.

SESSION 3 - Claims Management - Rapid Response Team: Controlling Exposure Risks

• Speakers:

• Christine Bernstock, AECOM

• James Tyrie, Wood Smith Henning & Berman LLP

• Bill Wingertzahn, Sompo International Insurance

Know when to deploy attorneys and investigators to serious accident and fire sites to coordinate the overall investigation, gather appropriate evidence and materials, assist with the overall investigation, and control the potential exposure if a suit is commence. We will discuss how to assemble the appropriate team, when it is a good time to have a rapid deployment, and what are the issues faced with the client, the carrier, and the attorneys.

SESSION 3 - Construction - It's Not All About Faulty Workmanship

• Speakers:

• La Tonya Darby, Unison Risk Advisors (RCM&D)

• Joe Duncan, Clark, May, Price, Lawley, Duncan & Paul LLC

• Elaine Fresch, Hawkins Parnell & Young, LLP

• Phyllis Modlin, Markel Service, Inc.

This roundtable will address managing product liability exposure in construction litigation. Although sometimes intertwined with faulty workmanship, product manufacturers, suppliers and distributors have unique exposure created by the strict liability, breach of warranty and negligent design and manufacturing claims that they face. The panel will discuss the classic battle between an installer and a product manufacturer/supplier. Defense and coverage strategies will be explored.

SESSION 3 - Construction - The Impact of the Affordable Care Act on Personal Injury Litigation

• Speakers:

• Thomas Maroney, Clyde & Co

• Lee Sheridan, Ironshore Insurance Company

• Darrell Whiteley, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, LLP

This session will discuss how to most effectively use ACA to reduce Plaintiffs claims in personal injury litigation. We will provide a plan to defend against claims for future medical costs and loss of health insurance.

SESSION 3 - Cyber Liability - Tales from the Cyber Front Line

• Speakers:

• Laura Burke, Canopius Group

• Marissa Olsen, Aspen Insurance

• Stuart Panensky, Pierson Ferdinand LLP

• David Rock, Trium Cyber

We will discuss the nature of cyber risk and hear how policyholders plan, prevent, protect and detect unauthorized access to data. We will explore the mechanics of data breach response and how different situations warrant different responses. Finally, we will explore legal issues that arise and how cyber claims are generally handled.

SESSION 3 - Environmental and Toxic Tort - Let's Talc!

• Speakers:

• Katie Barker, RiverStone Resources LLC

• John Felice, Clyde & Co

• David Goldman, Governo Law Firm LLC

Talc is a mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate. When most people hear the word talc, they think about baby powder. While this may sound harmless, one should never underestimate the creativity of the asbestos plaintiffs' bar. With so many traditional defendants filing for bankruptcy protection in the face of seemingly never-ending asbestos litigation, plaintiff attorneys have set their sights on companies that either mined, manufactured, or distributed products with asbestos-containing talc. We will discuss the science behind the allegations concerning asbestos-containing talc, the types of products potentially implicated, recent verdicts, and strategies for defending your talc client. So join us for this lively discussion and let's talc!

SESSION 3 - Extra-Contractual - Isn't Anything Sacred Anymore?

• Speakers:

• Murphy Burke, Loeb Law Firm

• Jonathan M. Kuller, Self Employed

• Michael LaFond, Pekin Insurance Company

Examine current trends and identify the means to maximize valid privilege claims. Distinctions between factual investigation and strategic legal analysis will be explored. Distinctions between first party and third party claims and the resultant impact on privilege will be evaluated. Examples of successful (and unsuccessful) assertions of privilege will be analyzed. The group will also examine the discovery treatment of reserves and underwriting materials.

SESSION 3 - Insurance Coverage - Complex Builder's Risk Claims

• Speakers:

• Jonathan Barger, Butler Weihmuller Katz Craig LLP

• Dan McLeod, Liberty Mutual Canada

• Amy O'Rorke, Sedgwick

Builder's risk claims are often complex, involving a variety of issues and requiring multiple areas of expertise. Managing a builder's risk claim requires an understanding of the policy, an investigation into the cause of the loss and extent of the damage, the retention of the proper experts, and an analysis of the policy coverage, exclusions and valuation provisions in light of the results of the investigation. This session will feature a hypothetical builder's risk claim, which will allow the audience to discuss, debate, and work through the issues that arise in a builder's risk claim.

SESSION 3 - Insurance Fraud - What It Takes to Catch a Fraud

• Speakers:

• William Findle, Henderson Brothers

• Patricia Holden, Cipriani & Werner, PC

• Michael Markey, Chubb

• Andy Smith, USAA

• Gene A. Weisberg, GladstoneWeisberg ALC

Examine some of the costliest and creepiest insurance fraud cases over the course of the last year to discuss what classic types of insurance fraud continue to plague carriers and law enforcement alike, what types of fraud claims are trending or emerging, and the tools and techniques that were used in the detection and prosecution of these noteworthy and often notorious claims.

SESSION 3 - Litigation Management - Big Data: Big Breakthrough or Big Brother?

• Speakers:

• Dion Cominos, Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani

• Nicholas Conca, Berkshire Hathaway GUARD Insurance Companies

• Laura Cornish, Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.

• Larry Goanos, Andros Risk Services

• Fiona Zhang, Advisen Ltd.

The legal services industry is presently on the cusp of incorporating macro analytics and performance statistics as both a predictive and an evaluative tool in the field of litigation management. This probing session will explore the cutting edge ways in which these new and transformative approaches will profoundly affect counsel, clients and the profession alike in the coming years both in terms of the way services are performed and the way in which they are measured/purchased.

SESSION 3 - Litigation Management - Crisis Management

• Speakers:

• Joseph Pitstick, BMW Financial Services NA, LLC

• Michael Sayne, Pilot Travel Centers LLC

• James Wright, Butler, Vines & Babb

Your plane has landed at your connection, you check you messages. The FBI has arrived at your office and the company needs to know what to do. This roundtable will discuss how to handle crisis situations where a wrong move can potentially cost a lot of money or even have criminal repercussions.

SESSION 3 - Litigation Management - Panel Counsel Performance Measurement: Understanding and Communicating How Success Is Measured

• Speakers:

• Mary Haefer, Retired

• Craig Hartsuyker, Farmers Insurance Exchange

• John Sparks, Fowler Hirtzel McNulty & Spaulding, LLC

• Brad Spicer, The Cincinnati Insurance Companies

• Vincent Venturella, Wolters Kluwer ELM Solutions

• Daniel Winkler, Westfield Insurance

Insurers are honing their panels – often times refining them to include key partners and proven practice area experts – in order to best manage their claims litigation activities, with an eye towards tightly controlling legal spend and strengthening relationships with key firms in critical practice areas and jurisdictions. This session covers key concepts and practices that can inform and mold advanced panel management and performance management initiatives. We will explore how measuring firm performance using a holistic mix of objective and subjective data is a key factor in successful panel management.

SESSION 3 - Litigation Management - Point/Counter Point: Claims and Counsel

• Speakers:

• Susan M. Clemson, Berkley Luxury Group

• Ryan Gillespie, Chubb

• Matt McColley, KW Specialty Insurance Company

• Steven Weiner, Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan LLP

Have you made clear to your counsel what you want and /need from them? Do the claims professionals that counsel deal with always understand what counsel needs? Have both sides explained what counsel is expected to do (and not do)? This is more than simply sending out (and agreeing to adhere to) billing/claim handling guidelines. This speaks more to the elements of this relationship that are crucial to make the overall results achieved – qualitatively, quantitatively, strategically, and economically beneficial. This roundtable discussion will explore both sides of these issues, presented in a point/counter point format.

SESSION 3 - Premises Liability - Is the Reptile Real?

• Speakers:

• Teresa Beck, Klinedinst PC

• Mitch Jones, Sedgwick

• Alan Parker, Special Claims Services, Inc

• Valerie Theng Matherne, Courington, Kiefer, Sommers, Matherne & Bell L.L.C.

This roundtable will discuss the basics of the plaintiff bar's reptile program, and assess verdicts reported by the reptile program as reptile verdicts. The group will discuss whether a reptile effect was present or not based on analysis of the facts, liability, and damages. Participants will be provided background facts of 2015 Reptile verdicts and asked to assess verdict ranges and comparative fault. Participants will assess whether verdicts were within ranges expected or whether a reptile enhancement of the verdicts in each case was present, and what can be done to offset such tactics by claim resolution professionals and defense counsel.

SESSION 3 - Product Liability - Wild Thing: Organic, Non-GMO, and Nutraceutical Products

• Speakers:

• Jeanine Clark, Margolis Edelstein

• Carolyn Finch, Munich Re Specialty - North America

• Julia Manganaro, Navigators, A Brand of The Hartford

• Patrick Wylie, Davis Rothwell Earle & Xóchihua P.C.

Consumers are increasingly health-conscious about the consumption of food and nutritional products. This translates to immense growth within the nutritional supplement, nutraceutical, and specialty food markets. Manufacturers and distributors have responded to the nutritional and environmental/preferences of their consumers. We can expect a corresponding increase in claims/litigation. This session will address parallels and differences with traditional pharmaceutical litigation.

SESSION 3 - Professional Liability - Here Comes the CFPB - Will Professional Liability Be Changed Forever?

• Speakers:

• Dennis Galvin, Argo Group US

• Regan Katz, Marsh McLennan Agency

• Dax Watson, Lipson Neilson P.C.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau came into effect in 2010, with its enforcement division ramping up over the last year. The CFPB's regulatory arm will have a significant impact in the professional liability world, and for the first time since its inception in 1974 there will be significant RESPA oversight. RESPA extends to settlement service providers and prohibits certain financial kickbacks among these providers. To date, there has been more than $55 millions in fines ordered for RESPA violations (mostly in the last 12 months) and with a new office opening on the west coast, those fines could double and/or triple over the next year. Standard E&O policies do not cover fines and penaltie (leaving huge exposure for the insured) and have limited sub-limit coverage for the retention of an attorney to defend regulatory matters. The session will focus on risk reduction analysis for those professionals facing CFPB scrutiny and assess how the CFPB will affect future E&O policies and coverage as this regulatory body continues to expand its reach.

SESSION 3 - Professional Liability - The Strategic, Moral and Ethical Dilemmas of Defending Clear Misconduct Claims

• Speakers:

• Peter Biging, Goldberg Segalla LLP

• Sally Combs, Self Employed

• Steven McMannon, ClaimsFirst Services

• Dean Milber, Brown & Brown Program Insurance Services, Inc.- dba Lancer Claims Services

• Kim Noble, Applied Financial Lines

As a claim resolution professional or defense attorney involved in professional liability claims, there may be times when you are confronted with claims involving clear misconduct, credible allegations of fraud, intentional misconduct, or otherwise malicious and utterly indefensible behavior. When confronted with these claims, you will immediately face potential coverage issues, regulatory concerns, and ethical concerns and considerations with regard to the tripartite relationship, as well as moral concerns with regard to defending and protecting the individuals/entities alleged to have been involved in same from exposure. Managing these various issues and concerns can be a delicate balancing act, requiring a careful consideration of the issues presented on multiple levels, and creative litigation strategies. This session will explore the moral, ethical, and strategic considerations to be balanced in successfully handling the seemingly indefensible professional liability claim.

SESSION 3 - Professional Liability/Diversity and Inclusion - Are You Ready for Ms. Cox? Transgender Individuals and the EPL Issues Facing Employers

• Speakers:

• Claudia Costa, Goldberg Segalla LLP

• Martetta Thompson, Hiscox

• Jennifer Weinstein, Skyward Specialty Insurance

• Pamela Woodside, Self Employed

Thanks to Laverne Cox, the first Emmy-nominated transgender actress in the TV show Orange is the New Black, issues affecting transgender individuals, including workplace discrimination, harassment and retaliation, have come to the forefront of employment litigation. This session will examine potential EPL issues likely to face employers of transgender individuals, including common pitfalls and their potential ramifications. The session will also address claims handling and coverage issues that may be involved in these types of cases.

SESSION 3 - Transportation - Avoiding High Stakes Penalties and Loss of Government Contracts

• Speakers:

• Murielle Arn, Graebel Companies, Inc

• James DeRosa, JDi Data

• W. Brett Mason, Stone Pigman Walther Wittmann L.L.C.

Avoiding High Stakes Penalties and Loss of Government Contracts: An in depth discussion of the complex web of OFAC and BIS regulations, compliance, penalties and enforcement that can snare even the well informed. The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions based on US foreign policy and national security goals against targeted foreign countries and regimes, terrorists, international narcotics traffickers, those engaged in activities related to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and other threats to the national security, foreign policy or economy of the United States. The U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security advances U.S. national security, foreign policy, and economic objectives by ensuring an effective export control and treaty compliance system. Penalties and settlements in 2015 already total $270,000,000. CLM participants will receive practical tips, best practices and solutions from three different perspectives on how to identify, avoid and/or reduce risk, maintain compliance, and mitigate potential penalties.

SESSION 3 - Workers' Compensation - Barbarians at the Gate

• Speakers:

• J. Russell Goudelock, McAngus Goudelock & Courie, LLC (MGC)

• Michael Mattix, Self Employed

• Robert McNemar, Ameritrust

Many jurisdictions have enacted legislation to minimize recoveries to the claimant’s bar in workers' compensation claims. The plaintiff’s bar has sought to maintain its revenue stream by filing suits against the employer outside the workers' compensation system. Traditionally, the workers' compensation laws in the various states afforded virtually complete protection against such litigation through the exclusive remedy doctrine. The roundtable will trace the expansion of traditional exceptions to the exclusive remedy doctrine (third-party liability, dual capacity and intentional torts) to litigation centered on violations of the RICO Act, OSHA violations, bad faith claims handling, violations of various state constitutional or statutory provisions, workplace violence and retaliatory discharge.

Break

SESSION 4 - Claims Management - Defining Success Between Law Firms and Insurance Carriers

• Speakers:

• Dwayne Hermes, Hermes Law, P.C.

• Dewayne Mundell, Next Insurance

• Michael Zeoli, IAT Insurance Group

How can law firms and insurance carriers build and maintain better partnerships? Does use of technology and metrics translate to a more valuable partnership? To what extent should the services of law firms be considered a commodity? Participants in this roundtable discussion will have the opportunity to ask questions, share thoughts and ultimately walk away with valuable ideas to implement in their own businesses.

SESSION 4 - Claims Management - Law Firm Dissolutions, Receivers, Bankruptcy and Claims

• Speakers:

• Melissa Demmon, Sompo International Insurance

• Janice DiGennaro, Rivkin Radler LLP

• Joseph Garin, Lipson Neilson P.C.

• Thomas Sheffield, QBE Insurance

Beginning in 2008, several mega law firms imploded. Law firm failures result from a variety of factors but are most common during troubled economic times. When a law firm collapses, state bar associations, receivers and bankruptcy trustees are tasked with the obligations to wind down and dissolve in an orderly fashion. The dissolution process is messy and further complicated by claims and ethical issues. This roundtable will examine the causes of collapse and the issues confronting the Receiver or Trustee in winding up the affairs of the law firm.

SESSION 4 - Claims Management - Same-Sex Marriage, Open Carry and Weed

• Speakers:

• Mark Bernstein, HUB International

• Jeff Eberhard, Smith Freed & Eberhard

• J. Thaddeus Eckenrode, Eckenrode-Bauman

• Caryn Siebert, Gallagher Bassett

This discussion will focus on how these new legal concepts (via Supreme Court decisions and new legislation) will affect the way in which tort/injury/death claims may be evaluated in the future and the types of unique new claims we can expect. Now that same-sex marriage is the law of the land, that will obviously open up a new group of litigants in wrongful death cases, as well as consortium claims. With open carry, we may see a variety of new tort claims. Now that marijuana has been legalized in some states, there may be an increase in tort claims related to impairment issues. We will examine how new legislation and new laws have the potential to change the landscape of tort claims generally, so that claim resolution professionals and defense counsel can plan ahead for possible new issues and potential liability exposures.

SESSION 4 - Construction - Peeling the Layers of the Consent Judgment Onion

• Speakers:

• Henrietta Hinojosa, National Claim Services LLC

• Richard Righi, Righi Fitch Law Group

• Mark Scheer, Scheer Law PLLC

• Ralph Woodard, Navigators, A Brand of The Hartford

• Lee Wright, Tokio Marine HCC

Consent judgments are on the rise in construction defect cases because the standard operating procedures for insurers upon receipt of a direct tender is to issue a boiler plate reservation of right letter. In days gone by, reservation of rights letters served to protect the insurer from uncovered claims and inform the insured about available coverage. The contrary is now true. In certain jurisdictions, providing a defense subject to a reservation of rights serves as a bad faith trigger and results in unanticipated and unintended exposure to the insurer. This session will provide a multijurisdictional overview of consent judgments.

SESSION 4 - Cyber Liability - Cyber-Attack Preparedness Toolbox

• Speakers:

• Elizabeth Ganiere, EnergySolutions

• Steven Henning, Suite 200 Solutions

• Chad Layton, Goldberg Segalla LLP

Address the practical and cost-effective steps that a company (and its legal counsel) can take now that will not only minimize the threat or likelihood of a cyber event, but that will also ensure the company is better prepared to manage a cyber event. The discussion will focus on areas such as employee training, cost-effective strategies for handling technology-related matters, ensuring that business contracts provide appropriate protection, and other best practices and preparedness techniques. This session will also discuss the formation of an emergency response or breach team, including who should be part of that team and the steps that such a team must take in response to a cyber event.

SESSION 4 - E-Discovery and ESI - Reduce Cost and Risk During Discovery

• Speakers:

• Larry Brown, Epiq

• Clifton Dutton, Dutton, LLC

• Nicholas Martin, AXIS Specialty US Services, Inc.

• Marc Milano, BB&T Bank

• R. Gaylord Smith, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, LLP

With discovery being the most expensive and riskiest stage of any litigation, learning how to effectively manage the process can help control costs and reduce potential risk. The amount of data in question in today’s litigation can be overwhelming, and ensuring all data is properly collected and reviewed can be daunting. Don’t fear, we are here to discuss defensible processes for collecting and managing data, vendor and law firm selection, and procedures claim resolution professionals can implement with outside counsel for a consistent result.

SESSION 4 - Ethics - Dancing on the Head of a Pin

• Speakers:

• Brian S. Braunstein, Enterprise Holdings, Inc.

• Dennis Franchetti, Allied World

• Marcia Nigro, Sedgwick

• Lauren D. Wilkins, Langlois, Wilkins, Furtado & Metcalf, P.C.

• Pauline Will, Bennett Schechter Arcuri & Will LLP

This session will explore the tripartite relationship between the insurer, insured, and counsel. We will use a case study to show how easy it is to forget whose interest is paramount. The session will address the ethical issues that arise when defending pursuant to the terms of an insurance policy. We will discuss the duty to the client, potential conflicts of interest, the role of the insurer, TPA and counsel from the inception of the claim through trial. This session will also review the contractual relationship between the parties,confidentiality and ethical considerations. Both personal and corporate interest will be discussed.

SESSION 4 - Extra-Contractual - Bad Faith Discovery and Related Litigation Strategy

• Speakers:

• Jon Carnes, Chubb

• Lisa Manzer, Skyward Specialty Insurance

• Maureen R. O'Connor, Self Employed

Due to challenges and issues facing our industry as it pertains to bad faith claims, this roundtable will share insights from various points of view into recent case law affecting the scope of discovery as it pertains to bad faith claims, highlighting court decisions broadening the scope of communications and information protected by attorney client privilege and the work product doctrine. Specifically, courts have been narrowing the scope of an adjuster's testimony during depositions and limiting the scope of claims manuals and training materials that may be discoverable. These recent decisions are extremely advantageous to those defending bad faith claims.

SESSION 4 - Insurance Coverage - Insurance Complications in the Modern World

• Speakers:

• Richard Dugan, The Cincinnati Insurance Companies

• Andrew Smith, Self Employed

• Vincent Trimarchi, Sompo International Insurance

• Irene Yesowitch, Self Employed

New technology and business enterprises, including ride-sharing, Airbnb, legalized marijuana, Bitcoin, drones, self-driving cars, and cybersquatting are presenting new issues for the industry. This session will cover insurance coverage and litigation issues associated with these new businesses.

SESSION 4 - Insurance Coverage - Reservations about Reservations

• Speakers:

• Michelle Lorenz, Unknown

• Neil Selman, Selman Leichenger Edson Hsu Newman and Moore LLP

• Jay Sever, Phelps Dunbar

• Nelson Tavares, W.R. Berkley Corporation

In a majority of states, a reservation of rights can cost the carrier the right to appoint panel counsel and thereby control the defense, often leading to problems with case evaluation, quality of representation, reporting, and increased expenses. This interactive discussion will focus on the factors that should be considered before issuing a reservation, what strategic decisions the insured and insurer should consider if a reservation is issued, and throughout the entire process, defining the role of defense counsel and the ethical issues they must confront all along the way.

SESSION 4 - Insurance Coverage - Your Mergers and Acquisitions Have Consequences

• Speakers:

• Alan Freisleben, Freisleben Law Group

• Jeanette Hernandez, Claim Connect IQ

• Robert T. Johnson, Catalytic Claims Services

• Robert Olson, Greines Martin Stein & Richland LLP

• Alan Ronson, Munich Re Specialty - North America

• Eleftherios Stefas, Falcon Risk Services

Recent decisions have expanded insurance coverage available for liability acquired in the course of mergers and acquisitions. Our roundtable will dicuss thoughts on managing this emerging risk given the wave of consolidations in the business world.

SESSION 4 - Insurance Fraud - Stemming the Rising Epidemic of Insurance Fraud

• Speakers:

• Robert Abramson, Self Employed

• Jorey Chernett, Authentic4D

• John Franks, Infinity Insurance Company

• Princess Spencer-Kuc, Renue Systems of Indiana

Insurance fraud is at an all-time high. There is no better example than Dr. Farid Fata, the Michigan oncologist convicted of misdiagnosing hundreds of patients to defraud insurance companies. Fortunately, he was caught. We will explore creative ways to expose fraud in the pre-suit stage to reduce litigation costs, and examine innovative 3D technology, which has the potential to undermine the over reading of MRIs.

SESSION 4 - Litigation Management - Claims Inroads in Managing Litigation Spend

• Speakers:

• Thomas Best, Home Depot U.S.A., Inc.

• Christopher Riggs, Crawford & Company

• Daniel Santaniello, Luks, Santaniello, Petrillo, Cohen & Peterfriend

• Cathy Zwaan, USLI

In an age of data transparency, new analytic tools and e-billing data allow carriers and panel counsel to assess performance, efficiency, severity, and strategy across all lines of litigation. There are a gamut of metrics, and everyone is asking for them. We will identify the most useful metrics and analytical approaches to data, and processes put in place that led to reduction in litigation spend, yielding budget improvements, efficiency and compliance with client guidelines. The session will map out the critical metrics and how they may be used to realize claim inroads.

SESSION 4 - Litigation Management - Stop Writing Exhibits For Data-Breach Plaintiffs

• Speakers:

• Daniel Hecht, Sompo International Insurance

• Hillard Sterling, Self Employed

• Doug Worth, WTW

• Laura Zaroski, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Data breaches are commonplace, as is the litigation that follows. It is critical to use the attorney-client privilege to protect information generated before and after breaches. That information – including spontaneous emails and texts – often memorializes problems before breaches and during the scramble fix them. As a result, this information is targeted in discovery by adversaries, who want to turn these often-unflattering documents into exhibits and leverage to exact large settlements. Our roundtable will discuss practical tips to help use the attorney-client privilege to protect this information from disclosure.

SESSION 4 - Municipal Law - Read All About It: Crisis Media Management

• Speakers:

• Greg Gilliam, Schools of Ohio Risk Sharing Authority (SORSA)

• Alonzo Johnson, City of North Las Vegas

• Craig Pelini, Pelini Campbell & Ricard LLC

• Todd Zimmerman, Rohrbacher Trimble & Zimmerman Co., LPA.

In today's round-the-clock news environment, public entities and businesses face challenges when addressing the media following crisis or catastrophic events. The public wants to know, and the press will ask. How the responses are framed can be informative and reassuring; or they can be haphazard and inconsistent. The responses may also have direct impact on legal liability issues in litigation. This session will offer attendees actual case examples of crisis events that involved media interaction between the entities or businesses, and the responses—good or bad, as well as, offer perspectives of different experiences in these type cases, and the legal liability ramifications and solutions.

SESSION 4 - Product Liability - Product Liability: Issues in Today's Global Economy

• Speakers:

• Tarush Anand, McGlinchey Stafford, PLLC

• Samantha Bart, USI Insurance Services

• Patricia Baxter, Morgan & Akins PLLC

• Larry Beemer, Suite 200 Solutions

In today's global economy, with manufacturers and distributors located across the globe, effectively defending and tendering a product liability claim has become increasingly more problematic. Gaining the attention and cooperation of foreign manufacturers and distributors is often vital to a substantive defense of the design, manufacturing and failure to warn claims, and yet jurisdictional and cultural differences often impede the same, further affecting an insured's pure exposure and the ability to settle a claim. In this session, we identify these key challenges and explore practical resolutions, from both the risk management and claims handler perspectives, in order to reduce and/or eliminate exposure.

SESSION 4 - Professional Liability - Quicksand! Eroding Limits Professional Liability Policies

• Speakers:

• Eric Fitzgerald, McAngus Goudelock & Courie, LLC (MGC)

• Erika Nelson, Allied World

• Caryn Silverman, W.R. Berkley Corporation

• Harold Weston, Georgia State University

This course will examine the ethical pitfalls that claims professionals and defense attorneys can encounter when defending claims under eroding limits professional liability policies. We will discuss three scenarios with special consideration to the tensions arising between the insurer and the insured in these scenarios and whether certain practices can give rise to bad faith claims. Attendees will assume alternating roles as claims professionals, insureds and panel and personal counsel in several hypothetical exercises.

SESSION 4 - Reinsurance - What Is It That You Do?

• Speakers:

• Chris Nardi, Arch Reinsurance Company

• John O'Connor, Sompo International Insurance

• Michael Zigelman, Kaufman Dolowich LLP

This session is an introduction into reinsurance, the support provided to an insurance company (the ceding company) by the reinsurer and the complexities of the reinsurance coverage in the event of a large or complex loss, or an industry event. We will highlight why it is that reinsurance claims professionals are always the highlight of a party with interesting discussions that span our world of claims and insurance losses!

SESSION 4 - Religious Non-Profit - Answering to a Higher Power

• Speakers:

• Jeffrey Benedict, Church Mutual Insurance Company

• Scott Green, Goldberg Segalla LLP

• Cassandra Jean-Baptiste, Starr Companies

• Christian Novay, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, LLP

Religious Institutions are unique in the eyes of the law and, correspondingly, require leadership and counsel that understand these distinctions. In the context of employment discrimination litigation, the ministerial exception applies to shield religious institutions from scrutiny in their employment-based decisions when the employee in question is expected to personify the institution's religious beliefs. Participants will review the current state of the law by examining decisions applying the ministerial exception since SCOTUS 2012 Hosanna-Tabor decision. The group will discuss whether the exception strikes a proper and workable balance between autonomy in employment based decision-making and employee protections and how the law affects internal decision making.

SESSION 4 - Transportation - There's Something about Owner-Operators

• Speakers:

• Ronald Harrell, RDH Consulting LLC

• Laurence J. Rabinovich, Barclay Damon, LLP

• Tamara Warn, Swift Transportation Company

The classification of owner operators as independent contractors of the motor carriers that dispatch them, is central to the business model of many trucking companies around the country. That model is now under siege. The Department of Labor recently issued a policy statement that declares most workers should be considered employees, and various think tanks and politically active entities have focused attention on the trucking industry as one in which misrepresentation is rife. Case law on the topic continues to be mixed and some companies have attempted to address the problem by moving from one state to another. We will look at the situation from various perspectives and in various contexts.

SESSION 4 - Workers' Compensation - Putting the Cow Back in the Barn

• Speakers:

• Bill Austill, Austill, Lewis, Pipkin & Maddox, P.C.

• Patricia Brookey, PMA Companies

• Julie Fortune, Self Employed

• Mark Pew, Preferred Medical Network

Medical care in workers' compensation often includes treatment not considered in a health insurance/non-litigation setting, for example compounded drugs focused on topical creams for pain management. The session will cover the practical use of treatment guidelines and other tools to see that necessary treatment is provided, while avoiding excessive or clinically inappropriate services. We will examine the use of outcome predictors to prevent medical practitioners from performing unnecessary and counterproductive treatments and surgeries. The discussion will focus on the various options for effectively using these predictors in litigated claims, thereby sparing the injured worker from the potential harm caused by such treatments and avoiding the unnecessary and often substantial expense.

SESSION 4 - Workers' Compensation - The First 48 Hours: CSI

• Speakers:

• Bijan Bijarchi, Sedgwick

• Michelle Dadisman, BBA Aviation USA, Inc.

• Niki Ingram, Unknown

• Mac Kendall, The Redwoods Group, Inc.

• Kimberly Lorenz, Unknown

• Julie Sfurm, Elkay Manufacturing Company

Crucial to successful claim handling and eventual litigation is understanding the key facts in a case. Through this session, we will discuss the essential information to be gathered through an incident report from both the claims and litigation perspectives, as well as how this information affects the path of a claim. Specific attention will be given to special concerns for premises liability, transportation claims, retail/hospitality claims, and claims involving minors, as well as spoliation of evidence.

Committee Meetings - Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Audit Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Cyber Liability Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - eDiscovery and ESI Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Employment Practices Liability

Committee Meetings - Environmental and Toxic Tort Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Extra-Contractual Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Insurance Coverage Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Insurance Fraud Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Medical Legal Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Municipal Law Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Product Liability Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Professional Liability Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Property Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Religious and Non-Profit Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Subrogation Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Transportation Committee Meeting

Committee Meetings - Workers' Compensation Committee Meeting

Reception and Dinner - Throwback Thursday - 80s Party!

Break out your favorite parachute pants and members only jackets – reception, dinner and live entertainment! (included in the registration fee)